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Texans for Education Opportunity Founder and Chair Stacy Hock issued the following statement after the Texas Senate passed House Bill 21 in a bipartisan effort early this morning. HB 21 is a comprehensive education bill providing for an additional $530 million in public school funding, charter school facility funding and an Education Savings Account program for children with special needs.

From the oil industry to aerospace, Houston is a national economic leader. We are the fourth largest city in the nation and we attract the most talented workforce from around the world. We have many things to be proud of, but sadly, our progress in public education is not one of them.

When the Texas Education Agency unveiled its new grading system at the beginning of this year,

Advocates Pushing for Saving Accounts for Special Needs Students
By Victor Diaz
Spectrum News Austin

Inside the state capitol, politicians debate the dollars and sense that would make Education Savings Accounts (ESAs) a reality. Advocates want those accounts for students with special needs. An ESA would give those parents access to 90 percent of what the state spends each year per student.

For the past eight years, the Texas conservative grassroots movement has led the fight against federal failures on everything from Obamacare to lax border security and non-enforcement of immigration laws. Texas has been a champion for liberty and a leader in many arenas — but not in academic success — and certainly not in education choice.

The public policy that could change my autistic son’s life
By Paul Thibodeaux
Texas Tribune‘s TribTalk

I walked into the Texas Capitol for the first time several weeks ago on an unusual mission: I came to share my greatest fear as a father.

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We teared up when we first learned about legislation that would have allowed parents to customize the education of their special-needs children. Finally, we had hope that perhaps our son may have the opportunity to learn,